Many modern conveniences include electronic devices. So much so that our lives are filled with electronic devices though often, we take them for granted overlooking the electronic content. Every day tasks like banking, shopping, watching television, and even exercising often include electronic devices such as automated teller machines (ATM), cash registers, exercise equipment, and wristwatches.
The proliferation of electronic devices has brought with it demands for improved products. The demand has created a consistent if not increasing expectation for new features, higher speed, more data, smaller sizes for portability, etc. Development of electronic technology has been driven to reduce size, improve utility, and increase performance of the integrated circuit devices in an ever-increasing range of products.
Packages of components such as semiconductor circuits, transistors, diodes and other electronic devices must also become smaller and thinner with more functions and connections. In packaging components, the need for connecting leads largely influences package dimensions. Many attempts have been made to improve package density including thin packs, multi integrated circuit die modules, and stacking modules.
Stacking integrated circuit die or integrated circuit packages has been limited by connection types and quantities. Attempts to stack devices with large numbers of connections have been costly. Additional or expensive materials along with more processing both steps and complexity have been required to provide improved connectivity. Some attempts include multiple substrates often with multiple layers and more costly interconnect due in part to processing.
Thus, a need still remains for improving packaging density while maintaining compatibility, flexibility, reliability, yield, and manufacturing throughput to improve performance and control costs in systems for integrated circuit packages.
In view of the ever-increasing commercial competitive pressures, along with growing consumer expectations and the diminishing opportunities for meaningful product differentiation in the marketplace, it is critical that answers be found for these problems.
Additionally, the need to save costs, improve efficiencies and performance, and meet competitive pressures, adds an even greater urgency to the critical necessity for finding answers to these problems.
Solutions to these problems have been long sought but prior developments have not taught or suggested any solutions and, thus, solutions to these problems have long eluded those skilled in the art.